Kansas State baseball opened the 2026 season with a statement win over a power conference opponent.

The Wildcats (1-0) defeated Iowa 15-6 in the first matchup of the MLB Desert Invitational in Goodyear, Ariz. It was the most runs for K-State in a season opener since 2009.

K-State finished with 15 runs on 14 hits, drawing 11 walks and swiping three bases while committing no errors. The Wildcats scored in seven different innings and broke the game open with a six-run fourth, highlighted by shortstop Dee Kennedy’s grand slam.

Offensively, AJ Evasco paced the lineup with a 4-for-5 performance and two RBIs, while Kennedy drove in five runs and stole two bases and Kyan Lodice added three hits and two RBIs. On the mound, James Guyette earned the win in his first career Opening Day start, striking out eight over five innings.

How it happened

The Wildcats’ season opener featured immediate traffic on the bases.

The junior right-hander Guyette worked around a bases-loaded jam in the top of the first inning, facing six batters and exceeding 20 pitches before escaping without allowing a run.

The Wildcats capitalized in the bottom half.

After two outs, Kennedy drew a walk and later stole second before Evasco delivered a two-run single to left field, giving K-State a 2-0 lead. K-State added another run in the second inning. With the bases loaded, Ty Smolinski lifted a sacrifice fly to left field to extend the advantage to 3-0.

Iowa answered in the third. The Hawkeyes plated a run and again loaded the bases against Guyette, but the junior ended the threat with a three-pitch strikeout to preserve a 3-1 lead.

A Lodice RBI single came in the bottom of the third, but the Hawkeyes pulled within one again in the fourth with an RBI double, trimming the deficit to 4-2.

But the Wildcats responded again, and this time poured it on.

Following a pitching change, K-State erupted for six runs in the bottom of the fourth. Shintaro Inoue drew a bases-loaded walk to bring in a run before Kennedy broke the game open with a 413-foot grand slam to left-center field. Carlos Vasquez later added a sacrifice fly as the Wildcats turned a two-run game into a commanding margin.

Iowa answered in the fifth with a two-run home run to cut into the deficit. The Hawkeyes added another run in the sixth on a wild pitch, but K-State responded in the bottom half as Lodice drove in a run with a single through the left side to keep the momentum in the Wildcats’ favor.

K-State tacked on two more in the seventh. Kennedy brought in a run on a fielder’s choice before another wild pitch allowed a run to score. Iowa added a late run in the eighth on an RBI single, but the Wildcats maintained control the rest of the way.

Chandler Murray launched a 412-foot, two-run home run to put an exclamation point on the Wildcats’ win in the eighth.

Up next

K-State continues play at the MLB Desert Invitational on Saturday, facing UConn at 6 p.m. CT at Scottsdale Stadium. Sophomore right-hander Donte Lewis is projected to make the start for the Wildcats opposite UConn left-hander Cayden Suchy. The game will stream on MLB.com and can be heard locally on KMAN.